"FORM CRITICISM" = the branch of biblical studies that classifies the various literary genres, studies their features, and considers how and where such forms were actually used in the "life setting" of the religious communities.

Modern biologists classify plants and animals into different classes, orders, families, genus, and species:

they describe each category in detail, and study how one genus or species differs from another

they also consider how each genus or species interacts with and is affected by its environment

Biblical scholars do similar things in classifying each biblical text as part of a certain genre or sub-genre

they describe each genre or form, and study the characteristics that distinguish one form from another

they also consider when and where ancient Jews and/or Christians first used such materials

Major Genres within the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament):

Foundational Myths & Legends - stories about the origins of the world, the first generations of humans, or the early years of a nation, intended to provide a foundational world-view upon which people base their communal and individual lives (Gen, parts of Exod, Num, Deut)

Legal Codes - collections of laws and instructions by which the people are to live (Lev, parts of Exod, Num, Deut)

Genealogies - lists of inter-relationships between peoples, either of successive generations or of different nations (parts of Gen, much of Num)

Annals - semi-historical narrative accounts of select events in a nation's life, focusing especially upon political and military exploits of its leaders, since usually written under royal sponsorship (Josh, Jdg, 1 & 2 Sam, 1 & 2 Kings, etc.)

Prophetic Books - collections of the oracles or words of God spoken to the people through human intermediaries (prophets) and the symbolic actions they perform at God's direction for the people's benefit (Isa, Jer, Ezek, etc.)

Acts - a partial narrative account about the beginnings and the growth of early Christianity; not a complete history of the early Church, since it focuses only on the actions of a few missionary leaders (Acts)